KTR’s ‘OG’ remark rekindles debate over KCR’s record
A two-letter abbreviation has suddenly become the hottest political label in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh. The buzzword? “OG.” The term, borrowed from pop culture and amplified by the hype surrounding Andhra Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister and Jana Sena chief Pawan Kalyan’s latest film OG, has now crossed over to political battlegrounds. The latest to wield the tag was BRS working president K.T. Rama Rao, who hailed former chief minister K. Chandrashekar Rao as the “OG of Telangana” — projecting him as the original architect and undisputed pioneer of the state’s political journey. But in politics, every label comes with a counter-label. The Congress was quick to reject the compliment, arguing that KCR was anything but an OG. Congress leaders instead branded him a ‘Nazi’, accusing him of running Telangana in an authoritarian manner during his decade-long tenure in power. For the uninitiated, OG stands for ‘Original Gangster’. While its roots lie in street slang, the term today is widely used to describe a respected trailblazer, an authentic original, or someone regarded as a legend in their field.
TGPSC finds its voice after long silence
In an era where rumours travel faster than official notifications, silence can be expensive. Just ask TGPSC chairman Burra Venkatesham. The usually media-shy Burra recently sprang a surprise calling for an impromptu press conference. The invitation itself became news. After all, it had been nearly two years since a TGPSC chief had faced reporters to discuss recruitment plans and job notifications. Journalists, sensing a rare opportunity, wasted no time asking the obvious question: Why did it take two years? Burra’s answer was refreshingly candid. Staying away from the media, he admitted, had created an information vacuum. And as nature — and social media — abhors a vacuum, speculation, half-truths and misinformation rushed in to fill the gap. The lesson appears to have been learnt the hard way. Realising that official silence often fuels unofficial narratives, the commission has decided to change course. Instead of allowing rumours to dominate timelines and WhatsApp groups, TGPSC plans to engage with the media regularly. The new formula: fewer surprises, more briefings — at least two or three press conferences every month.
Owaisi’s missing ingredient: Where’s the meat?
AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi is troubled by the UP government’s list of 200 traditional dishes, as part of its ‘one district, one product/cuisine’ initiative to promote the state’s cuisine. The problem? According to Asad, 53 per cent of people in UP eat non-vegetarian food, yet no meat dish was included in the 200 long item list. According to Asad, the situation in UP has come to such a pass that youth who organised an iftar on Ganga were penalised by the court, and robbers raiding a house, before leaving, instructed the women in the house after they spotted chicken in the fridge to stop using meat, and keep only vegetables in the family fridge. This is not a new grouse Asad has with the BJP on cuisine choices. Back in 2018, he countered Union home minister Amit Shah who alleged that the KCR government had time to eat biryani with Majlis leaders but had no time to address the state’s pressing issues. Asad had then hit back by sarcastically stating that he did not know biryani was so much on Shah’s mind, and offered to arrange for a parcel of Kalyani (beef variant of biryani) to be delivered to Shah in New Delhi.
MLA’s paddy privilege sparks row
There is an old saying that rules are made for the public, but politicians are free to interpret them as they please. This was proved to be true once again by a Congress MLA in Nalgonda district, who also holds a key post, whose success in selling his paddy directly to a rice mill unlike hundreds of other farmers waiting for their paddy to be purchased at a government run procurement centre. This action, apparently did not sit well with farmers who have begun questioning if rules do not apply to ruling party leaders, especially since the MLA also visited paddy procurement centres several times apparently to ensure paddy brought by farmers is bought at the minimum support price plus the Rs 500 bonus per quintal of the crop. The question doing the rounds is if the MLA knew something the farmers do not, and made sure the paddy from his fields is actually purchased.
Power hearing tests patience, language preference prevails
The Telangana Electricity Regulatory Commission (TGERC) staged a nearly nine-hour public hearing on Telangana Rythu Distribution Company’s bid for a licence, a meeting that tested both stamina and attention spans. Discom CMD Musharraf Faruqui opened the proceedings with why his company deserved the green light. TGERC chairman Justice D. Nagarjun gently nudged him to stick to Telugu so everyone could follow along — and for a while Musharraf obliged. As the day unfolded like an expert-panel relay — power-sector gurus, union leaders and politicians — taking turns and offering suggestions and voicing objections, when it was Musharraf’s turn for a rebuttal, the official responded in English, leaving the chairman’s Telugu plea forgotten somewhere between point three and point nine. Nine hours later, the hearing wrapped with plenty of opinions, a few unanswered questions — and proof that endurance matters in hearings, but so does the choice of language that one is most comfortable in.
Revanth’s public gesture rekindles talk of berth for Premsagar
The buzz is back, at least sort of on Mancherial MLA K. Premsagar Rao’s elevation to the state Cabinet. All this took was Chief Minister A. Revanth Reddy walking hand in hand with Rao on the dais at the recent public meeting in Asifabad. The word doing the rounds is Congress needs someone who knows the ground, and is strong in the Adilabad Lok Sabha constituency and it was only Rao who kept the party flag flying winning one of the seven Assembly segments in Adilabad. That Revanth stopped over at Rao’s house on his way back to Hyderabad only added to the grist that good tidings may be in store for Rao, especially since the party needs someone for everyone else to rally around when time for the next elections come around.
Little friend steals spotlight during Naidu’s Guntur visit
Chief Minister N. Chandrababu Naidu’s social media posts are usually packed with updates on investments, reviews and governance. But a post he shared on Wednesday struck a different chord and quickly became a hit among netizens. “I made a little friend today,” the Chief Minister wrote on X, attaching a video of his newest companion — an adorable toddler. The heartwarming clip showed Chandrababu affectionately kissing the child, while the little girl responded with a radiant toothless smile, winning hearts online. The charming interaction took place during the Chief Minister’s visit to Guntur for the inauguration of a hospital. As Naidu picked up the little girl, who appeared comfortable with the Chief Minister, she appeared reluctant to let go of him even when the child’s mother sought to take her back. Clearly delighted by the unexpected bond, Chandrababu later shared the video and introduced her as his “new friend”. The post soon attracted a flood of likes and comments, with some joking that friendship has no age limit and others saying the duo looked like “two little children sharing secrets.”
From campaign promise to elephant problem:
Trumpeting during an election campaign is one thing. But tackling the ponderous problem on which promises were made is another thing once elected. Finding herself in such a spot is minister Gummidi Sandhya Rani who had vowed to shield farmers in Parvathipuram Manyam from wild elephants. That was the easy part. Now, as fear grips villagers as eight elephants, including calves, roam near Markondaputti damaging palm oil plantations, and farmers demanding swift action including the setting up of a promised 400-acre Guchimi elephant sanctuary and deployment of trained Kumki elephants to push the herd deeper into reserve forests, the one question doing the rounds is where the leader who promised protection, is when it comes to actually doing something about the problem.
Contributions from L Venkat Ram Reddy, Neeraj Kumar, P Srinivas, Pillalmarri Srinivas, Md Nizamuddin, Md Ilyas, Aruna
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: deccanchronicle.com
